NHS Constitution and Handbook

Thursday 27th January 2022 Written Statements

[The Minister for Health (Edward Argar)]

Statutory report on the effect of the NHS constitution and updates to the constitution handbook

In accordance with the Health Act 2009, I have laid before Parliament a report on the effect of the NHS constitution. The report has also been published on the gov.uk website, alongside an updated version of the handbook to the NHS constitution.

The NHS constitution, like the NHS, belongs to us all. It empowers patients, public and staff by bringing together in one document the founding principles and values of our NHS. It sets out the legal rights to which patients, the public and staff are entitled and the pledges that the NHS has additionally made towards them. Just as importantly, it makes clear the responsibilities which we all have for supporting the NHS to operate fairly and effectively.

Throughout this extraordinary time where we have seen the huge impact of the pandemic on staff, patients and society as a whole, our NHS workforce have strived tirelessly to protect the people we love. It is therefore more important than ever that patients, public and staff know their rights, responsibilities and what they can expect from their NHS.

The report is based on an independent survey of staff, patients and the public. It describes how they view the impact of the NHS constitution, and its value in promoting and raising standards of care.

While the report shows that public awareness of the constitution is still low, we are pleased to see it has increased since the 2018 report, and staff awareness remains significantly higher than public awareness. We know that those informed about the NHS constitution are more likely to use it and so there is further work to do in improving awareness to ensure we all get the most out of our interactions with the NHS.

Looking forward, a full review of the NHS constitution itself is due in January 2025. The scoping for this review, including a statutory consultation with patients, carers and staff will begin this year. We will use the findings from today’s report to shape the consultation and explore how to increase awareness and use of the NHS constitution across all public and staff groups.

Alongside this report we have also published a revised version of the handbook to the constitution. The handbook explains each right, pledge and responsibility in the NHS constitution. It is designed to give the public, patients, their carers and families, and NHS staff fuller information about what the constitution means for them. This revision ensures the information given in the handbook remains accurate and up to date.

[HCWS564]